Annabelle and Joel Perform In Broadmoor Skating Club's Exhibition of National Competitors 12-18-11

Annabelle and Joel were honored to be asked to participate in Broadmoor Skating Club's First Annual Exhibition of National Competitors! They skated GREAT!

Friends Are the Best Part Of Figure Skating!

Eliana Gropman won the 2012 US Juvenile Dance title at last week's Junior National Figure Skating Championships. In this photo, Annabelle smiles with Eliana. The two girls became friends after we visited the Wheaton Ice Skating Academy during the summer of 2010.  I've included a couple more photos of Annabelle smiling with Eliana's training mates Caroline and Gwen.  Gwen also became one of Annabelle's friends during our Washington, DC adventure.

The Kids Had So Much Fun Competing In Pairs At Junior Nationals!

Another Junior Nationals is over for the Schneider-Farris family. The Schneider-Farris kids have taken part in the event for 5 years in a row!

Goals for Annabelle and Joel are to learn new moves and improve and to keep getting better at pairs. We'd like to find a new ice dance or pair partner for Rebekah.

Of course, the goals would be for the kids to all qualify for "big nationals" next season! It's been a wonderful ice skating journey that continues to be rewarding and fun.

• No More "Stand-Alone" US Junior Figure Skating Championships

Official Competition Practice 12-12-2011

Annabelle and Joel skated great today!

Annabelle and Joel - Pair Skating Run Through 12-9-2011

Annabelle and Joel did a perfect run-through of their pair program yesterday. Go kids!

Skating 12-8-2011

I filmed a bit of today's practice. Keep in mind Joel and Annabelle did a fairly good run-through at about 7:30 in the morning. Rebekah landed a nice double-toe-double-toe!

Off Ice Jumping

Ryan worked with Joel and Rebekah off ice on their jumps today.

Off Ice Fun and Training 12-7-2011

The Schneider-Farris kids practice their ice skating skills off ice every day. Also, once a week, they do tumbling-gymnastics. Here's some clips from today.





Now here's some of the skating that went on beforehand:

Annabelle and Joel - Pair Skating Practice 12-6-2011

Today was the last day that Annabelle and Joel were coached by Dalilah before Junior Nationals. Larry will be coaching the kids at JNs; Dalilah is going to the Junior Grand Prix Final.

Anyway, Dalilah had them skip doing the side by side spins this morning when they ran through their program. It was a clean run-through!

Yay! Annabelle and Joel!

It's been a very good year as far as improving at pair skating. Last year, at JNs, the kids were not doing fully extended lifts or throw doubles. Their speed has improved too.

I'm going to post last year's program to show how much they've improved.

Thanks Linda!

I have known Linda Kola Alexander for over sixteen years. When I first met Linda, she was not Honnen Ice Rink at Colorado College's manager; she was an accomplished skating coach who seemed to want to make others happy by passing on her knowledge and love of skating to others.

Yesterday, I wrote an article about Linda.

As I wrote the article, I realized that Honnen Ice Rink would not be anything without Linda. She has transformed that arena.

Before she managed it, the facility was very dirty. Now the place is spotless! There weren't any public sessions or even much opportunities for the public to use the facility. The college students had limited opportunities to skate. There was not that much going on at the ice rink at Colorado College. I remember because I was there.

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When my husband, Dan, was in a horrible accident and near death in 2005, Linda made it possible for my children to skate on public sessions at Honnen for a short while, free of charge, so that skating could be therapeutic for them during a time of much stress on our family. I still remember little Annabelle pushing a doll stroller around the rink then. It was a very special thing for me to see my little girl so happy during such a bad time.

Even before then, if I had an idea to help the rink, Linda let me try it, even if the idea was a bad one. I saw Linda help people over and over again. She did not just help me. She helped any person who needed or wanted her help.

For example, I remember when Linda's friend and fellow coach, Donna Schoon, adopted twin girls from Cambodia. Linda flew on the plane with Donna to get the babies since two adults had to hold the babies on the plane. Donna would bring the twins to the rink every morning and Linda would help feed the babies and/or even clean up after them.

What people around Linda have not known, is that she has been through so much in her life. She wants to give back since she's "been there." The article I wrote tells her story.

Linda's sacrifice is rare in the ice skating world. Her job as an ice rink manager has helped make Linda's desire to help people a reality. All she asks in return is to be appreciated. Wow!

If you know Linda personally, and she's done something for you related to skating or outside of skating, give her a hug or thank her. She certainly deserves it!

• Colorado College's ice rink manager gives to every person who comes her way
  
• Linda Kola Alexander - A Skating Teacher to Skating Teachers

_{Linda Kola Alexander made it possible for Annabelle Schneider-Farris to win the Juvenile Girls Test Track event at the 2011 Southwestern Regional Figure Skating Championships - Photo by JO ANN Schneider Farris}

Fire and Ice - 12-2-2011

We are so fortunate that the Broadmoor Skating Club gives us opportunities to perform in front of an audience. The video below shows Annabelle and Joel warming up before they performed last night.

Pair skating videos - Thanks to Sk8Sports Figure Skating App for iPhone

Again, I was playing around with the new Sk8Sports figure skating app for iPhone!

Thanks, "Coach Tiff!"

Yesterday, I put together an article about Tiffany Hyden-Dombeck who coached Rebekah and Joel in ice dancing since they were young kids.

It was so fun to write the article. I was inspired to write it since addition to writing for About.com, I write for Examiner.com and I was asked for articles about coaches that give back and have a passion for what they do. Tiffany certainly has done that.

The article made me appreciate Tiffany so much. Thank you, Tiffany, for giving so much of yourself to the Schneider-Farris family!

• Ice dancing coach Tiffany Hyden-Dombeck goes over and above for her skaters
  

Annabelle and Joel - Throw Double Flip! 12-1-2011

I am so excited! Annabelle and Joel are doing successful throw double flips! I took two different videos of the move done successfully. The second video has a proud mom's entertaining comments in the background!

Skiing Is Easy For Figure Skaters

The first time I went skiing, I was twenty years old. I signed up for a set of group lessons at The Broadmoor Ski School.

The instructor showed us a bit about how to maneuver around on skis, and then told us a bit about how to get off and on the ski lift. She told the class to wait for her when we got to the top. I didn't hear those words....

When I got to the top of the mountain, I immediately skied down without any instruction! It was so much fun. All my years of ice skating immediately crossed over into skiing! There was "nothing to it!"

Joel, Rebekah, and Annabelle learned how to ice and roller skate as soon as they could walk, but they also learned how to ski at about the same time. Every weekend, we took a day trip to the mountains to play in the snow and ski.

Our family likes both cross-country skiing and downhill skiing.

Today, we ended our Thanksgiving break with a wonderful day at the Breckenridge Nordic Center. We all "skated" in cross-country skate skis (except Dan who used snowshoes).

The best part was we stayed together and had a lot of fun enjoying the outdoors. When we go downhill skiing, Rebekah and Joel always take off since they ski faster than me and Annabelle and Dan does a snowshoe hike. This was really special today! What a nice way to end the Thanksgiving weekend!

• Sports That Figure Skaters Might Be Good At
  

Annabelle and Joel - Press Lift 11-25-2011

I took this video with the new Sk8Sports App for iPhone. I think the video looks pretty good, but so does the press lift!

By the way, Kent Johnson,m of Sk8Sports told me that Annabelle and Joel are the first pair team to record a video using the App! How cool is that?!

Wanted: A Pair or Ice Dance Partner For Rebekah

Rebekah and Joel have skated together since they were little. At first, they did both pairs and ice dance together, but Joel has skated pairs with Annabelle the past three seasons.

We've hoped to find a pair partner for Rebekah.

Rebekah and Joel continued to ice dance together, and Joel and Rebekah did complete together this past season ice dancing but now, Rebekah is interested in finding a new partner for either pairs or ice dance.

About Rebekah Schneider-Farris:

• Age 15
• Birthdate: 4-16-1996
• 5 feet tall
• 85 pounds
• Hazel eyes
• Broadmoor Skating Club
• Coaches: Dalilah Sappenfield and Laureano Ibarra and Ryan Jahnke
• Colorado Springs, Colorado
• Would like to compete in Novice or Junior Pairs and/or Novice or Junior Dance
• Tests passed: Senior moves in the field test, Intermediate free skating test, Novice free dance test, Two Silver dances, Novice pair test
• Hazel eyes
• Brown hair
• Contact info: joannfarris@yahoo.com

• Rebekah's Ice Partner Search Page

November 2011 Skating Competition Memories

Annabelle and Joel qualified for Junior Nationals 2012! They will compete in Lansing, Michigan on December 13. Both kids are very excited that they've added so much content to their pair skating during the past year. Last year, they didn't do overhead extended lifts...this year, they are doing both a press lift and a fully extended loop lift. They also had single throws last year. This year, they are doing two double throws. The kids both love pair skating and that is what counts!

Rebekah and Joel did a beautiful job at sectionals, and are the first alternates for Nationals in novice dance.